welcome to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are the stories that we are following for you. it is election day in america. chris christie up for reelection, but many say he is already looking past the state house. the nfl now taking a closer look at hazing after one player leaves the field and another is put on the sidelines. a mall shooting in new jersey terrorizes shoppers. ♪ it is election day and voters are going to be making

decisions that will effect their lives for years to come. several of the nation's largest cities, including new york, boston, houston, and detroit, all choosing mayors. we'll have more on the race for mayor of detroit is just a moment. but the biggest races are in virginia and new jersey. voters there are choosing their government for. and the race could provide clues as to who might be the country's next president. john, what is at stake today in new jersey? >> well, dell, officially what is at steak is the governorship of the great state of new jersey. we have republican governor chris christie aiming for a second term. his contender is little known, has a lot of trouble getting her message out, governor christie has managed to raise 13,

$14 million, and has been all over the television. governor christie is very popular after hurricane sandy. the problem of course is we're not talking about local politic. barbara bono wants to raise income tax, governor christy wants to cut it for everybody except the super rich. but that's not really what we're talking about. what everybody is talking about is a possible race for the white house in 2016, because governor christie is considered to be a contender, possibly up against hillary clinton. and dell, the polls suggest he is going to do really well here today. >> john, how are voters in new jersey -- how do they feel about the possibility they might pick a governor and then two years

later have to do it again if he decides to run for president? >> i know. his aids have their eyes on the higher prize, you might say. he is quite a popular governor near. and it really stems from hurricane sandy. the way he invited president obama along just ahead of the days of the 2012 presidential election. the thing about chris christie and the reason people are tipping him as a possible contender on the republican ticket is he says i do things my own way. i am my own guy. he does well in all of the demographics, because jersey is a democratic state yet he is a republican governor, so he appealed clearly to republicans, also to democrats, but crucially he also picks up votes among those independent voters, those

swing votes. that's why he says himself, the national party, at the republican level will be looking at what he does here tonight. >> john thank you very much this morning. cold out there. the other governor's race is in virginia. that's where a nasty and bitter campaign is now coming to an end. polls showing mcauliffee with a small lead. if he should win it would end the tradition in which the governor who does not control the white house goes on to win the state house. and voters in detroit will be casting their votes. but some say it will only be symbolic. john hen dren has that story.

>> reporter: in the motor city, it's an historic race to become the weakest contenders in history. the contenders , in a city with 82% of residents are black, polls show support is going towards the white candidate. >> folks who are on the front lines, who live here, just want it fixed. we are rearranging deck chairs on the titanic. let's make the tough decisions. >> reporter: the race has divided families in homes like this one. but both agree on one thing, the

candidate's race doesn't enter into it. >> reporter: he be the first white mayor in 40 years. does that matter? >> no. >> don't matter at all. >> reporter: since coleman young became the city's first black mayor, no white candidate have stood a chance. but it could be that the situation has grown so bad that people don't care with the mayor looks like them. >> race doesn't matter. that's what a lot of people nowadays focus on the color, but it is not about that. >> reporter: is what is it about? >> it's about who has the determination for the city. >> reporter: even in the obama era, it doesn't make detroit a post racial industry. >> the mistrust still exist.

and where you just don't trust those who are in power who tend have white faces and often are male. >> reporter: the prize for the victor a city who's troubles run deep, and once the state appointed emergency manager hands back control to the mayor, the problem of keeping the bankrupt motor city from returning to where it is now. for complete coverage of today's elections any time and anyplace, we invite you to go to our website, aljazeera.com. we have live blog updates on the voting and later this evening, you will find it all on aljazeera.com. the senate will resume debate on the employment non-discriminate act. it is the first significant gay

bill since 2010. we are learning more about the allegations that a member of the miami fdolphins allegedly bullied a player. there are new details emerging concerning that shooting at a new jersey mall that lead to a massive evacuation last night. the shooter had a history of drug abuse and drug dealing. police say that could be the reason the 20-year-old opened fire inside the mall. he fired six rounds inside the complex before turning the rifle on himself. no one else was hurt. last night people evacuated thousands of people from the largest mall in new jersey.

operations are now back to normal lax. one tsa officer was shot twice in the foot during that attack, and now tony grigsby is speaking out for the first time. >> while helping an elder man try to get to a safe area, i turned around and there was the gunman and he shot me twice. >> reporter: the suspect is in critical condition and under heavy sa a decision. his family apologizing for the death of a tsa officer. >> it is most important for us as a family to express our deep and sincere sympathy to the hernandez family. by all accounts officer hernandez was an exemplary member of the law enforcement community and a good family man. >> the attorney says that the

family is shocked and numbed by the shootings and they are fully cooperating with law enforcement. secretary of state john kerry making a brief detour stopping in poland. while there he addressed the issue of spying by the nsa. he says the u.s. is opening to discussion on the agency and its programs. >> president obama welcomes this opportunity to work with our allies, and ultimately if we get it right, which we will, we cannot only alleviate concerns but actually strengthen our intelligence relationships going forward, and we can all be safer as a result as well as protecting the privacy of citizens. kerry's next stop is israel. syria's humanitarian crisis is far worse than once believed. there is a new report out from the united nations, it says that nearly 9.5 million people living

in the war-torn country need help. 6.5 million syrians are currently homeless. 2 million have fled the country, 4 million now said to be internally displaced. >> reporter: more than 40% of syria's population now relyes on outside help to survive. the refugees either inside their own country or seeking shelter elsewhere. and the situation is getting worse. the un estimates that figure will rise to half of the population in need of aid by year's end. >> it is not one single event that has caused this. it is a gradual increase because the conflict continues to deteriorate day after day, hour by hour. >> reporter: the two and a half years of civil war have left many syrians without proper

sanitation facilities, sufficient food, water or access to federal help. the biggest numbers some from provinces in lebanon. but for those who have been able to escape the violence, more than 100,000 are seeking shelter in egypt, more than half a million are in jordan. lebanon has the most with more than 800,000 areas. and together turkey and iraq have around 700,000. the un says there is a will to help from those outside, but is calling for both sides to allow aid in. an outbreak of polio has made the matter even more urgent. >> it is extremely important for us to be able to give any kind

of aid, be it food, health services, medicine, vaccination for children, so we can reach those in syria. people from syria or displaced from syria, it is going to into winter. it will be very cold. they will need more aid, and we can't reach them. >> reporter: so as those left behind struggle to stay alive and feed their families this humanitarian crisis appears worse than ever. un enjoy lakhdar brahimi is at meeting with syrians in geneva in an attempt to bring more peace to syria. phil these agreements have been delaying the start of talks for months now. any progress? have they even decided who is going to come?

>> no, they haven't, quite frankly. at least that's what we're hearing here at the un headquarters in geneva. a awful lot of high-powered players have arrived to have talks with brahimi. including members of the un permanent security council and neighbors of syria. what is lacking notably is any syrian presence. dell? >> syria has been skeptical. what is the latest on those efforts? >> it's almost a non-starter as far as any syrians are concerned. people from the government said they are not going to attend any talks that are based on assad

leaving government. and the opposition say we're not coming unless there is an acceptance that there will be a change. so there is an impasse here. and while the members may be meeting to talk about when there may be another geneva two, unless the syrians come, it is just non-starter after non-starter. >> phil thank you very much. up next on al jazeera america. >> now people are realizing they can't take it for granted. they have to stand up and fight for us, because if we don't there will be big industry coming along and threatening it. >> new residents of maine fear a new oil pipeline will ruin their environment. >> they share it on the stream. >> social media isn't an after-thought, it drives discussion across america. >> al jazeera america's social

media community, on tv and online. >> this is your outlet for those conversations. >> post, upload and interact. >> every night share undiscovered stories.

♪ yesterday's positive mood on

wall street appears to be at little short lived. stocks falling today. the dow down right now 37 points. things may be getting better. jpmorgan settlement talks with the government are heating up once again. the $13 billion deal would resolve a number of allegations. "wall street journal" reporting that negotiations are working out the fine print now, and a deal could be reached by the end of the week. if you are looking for a yoga advise or computer help services, google want to help. the service is called help out, and is taking your calls today. the fees are set by each expert, 20% of the proceeds will go to google.

today citizen of south portland will be voting on a pipeline that will run through their community. casey coffman reports. >> reporter: it's a small protest that could be anywhere in america joshgs but this is portland, maine. and sarah believes her state has become the next battleground for the environmental movement. >> we all are enjoying the lifestyle we take for granted here, and now people are realizing we have to stand up and fight for it, because if we don't, there is big industry that will come across and threaten it. >> reporter: the pipeline is owned by the portland pipeline corporation. it has provided montreal for w crude for decades, but that could soon change.

it would reverse the flow and bring tar sands down through maine to be shipped out on tankers. environmentalists are encouraging voters to vote for a water protection service. they say allowing the oil to cross their state is simply not worth the risk. >> in order to move the tar sands through pipelines you have to have it at a higher heat and higher pressure, so the chances of it bursting is more dangerous. >> reporter: but not everyone agrees. >> i think if we really work rat banning it, i think what is going to happen is you are going to have people pull out of portland and send them someplace else, so unless there actually is a problem, let's give it a shot. >> reporter: but sarah believes waiting for a problem to happen

could be too late. she shows us why. >> this pipeline runs through this wetland, and this wetland obviously is draining off into the lake. it's the largest public water supply to the state. this pipeline is over six decades old, and the possibility of having a leak here would not only devastate the local economy but also make the drinking water supply no longer available to thousands of folks here in the state. >> reporter: in the end it is the city residents who will decide. casey coffman, al jazeera, south portland maine. >> people who need help can get into housing and employment and live the american dream we all have to feel justifieder towards.

we'll tell you about a program that is helping people live inside their cars.

♪ welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are your headlines. it is election day across america. several of the city's largest cities choosing mayors. there are new details in that shooting in a new jersey mall that lead to a massive evacuation last night. authorities said the shooter had a history of drug air abuse. police say he opened fire and then killed himself. no one was hurt inside the mall. secretary of state john kerry making a short detier from his middle east trip with a stop in poland. he discussed nsa spying and military collaboration. it is a sad sign of the times, people so poor that they are forced to live in their cars, and their numbers are

growing each and every day. one way to fix it seems to be setting up parking lots across the country where people can get shelter and some food. >> reporter: just before 6:00 pm theresa smith heads towards this unassuming church. but it's not religion she is after. it's the parking lot. >> this is our office. what we use. we have our file cabinet. it has our paperwork. we want to ensure that our participates have what they need. >> reporter: smith and the nonprofit sheing founded dreams for change, rent the lots from this church and a youth center nearby. it's one of a dozen programs in 85 sights, largely along the west coast that provide a safe haven. smith started the first lot in

august 2010 when a new face of homelessness emerged from the great recession. middle cast a families suddenly cast adrift in long-term unemployment. >> they would go down to the shelters and come back in tears saying that's not me. i'm not really homeless, i'm just in between right now. where do i go? >> reporter: now they report some sort of income, but struggle with under employment or jobs that pay just a fracture of what they are used to. more than a thousand miles away frank says a growing population of people living in their cars and rv's have created host of problems. >> they steal from us, they drop their trash wherever they want. they bring the property value down because who wants to buy a house with a campground of america across the street. >> reporter: graham helped

create seattles first program last year. he says around 70% are first time homeless. >> we want to have a safe community where we work together, where people who need help can get into housing and unemployment, and live the american dream that we have all got to feel we're justified towards. a dream that ma i will da forces herself to keep in mind each night that she and her four children spend crammed in her small sedan. >> about a week ago, i just -- i just didn't want to come back to the parking lot to sleep in my car. it was hard. but, you know, hopefully at the end of the line i'll have something better to offer my kids, so it's temporary. along temporary, but it will be over soon. >> reporter: david shuster, al jazeera. ♪

i'm meteorologist dave warren, we are watching this storm take shape over the midwest. there is rain and snow, and some of the snow will begin to accumulate. there is the heavy rain moving through nebraska, and coming down as snow in north dakota and south carolina. the snow is coming down through central nebraska and up into south dakota and portions of wyoming and montana. but the real indication is the visibility. these numbers drop a bit where the snow is coming down. it is not quite that heavy in rapid city, south dakota. this is from fog there in wisconsin. now the computer forecast shows this snow continuing, this area of heavy snow moving into northwestern iowa by 4:00. later today minneapolis will get that snow for the evening rush.

exactly how? it looks like just about 2 to 6 inches of snow. it really depends on the temperatures. now the winter weather advisory, no warnings in effect, justed a an visery throughout this whole area. snow today ending tomorrow, clearing out thursday and friday, but the temperatures are still into the 40s. the warmer air will be spreading east ahead of this rain and snow. 50s in chicago today and a little warmer across the southeast as well. dell? thank you very much. sometimes there is hope amidst a lot of depair. this man has an animal sanctuary about 12 miles from the fukushima nuclear plant. he refused to leave because he

refused to leave his pets. we are leaving, though. that's al jazeera america. "inside story" is next. ♪ doctors to help fortune detainees. that's in tonight's "inside story." >> hello, i'm libby casey. doctors take an oath to do no harm. medical professional working with the u.s. military and intelligence services were forced to violate that oath in the treatment of terror suspects captured after 9/11. even though torture was banned by executive order in 2009 the